Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) Final Assessment

FINAL ASSESSMENT

DATE/DAY : 21 August 2025

DURATION : 21-24 August 2025

DEADLINE : 11:59PM 24 August 2025

INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES:

1. This is final assignment consist of one (1) case study question.
2. Please read the instruction under each section carefully.
3. You must adhere to all academic formalities, and your work must include complete in-text citations for all materials used in your paper (including any internet sources).
4. Without citations, your essay is considered plagiarized.
5. Students are required to submit their answers via Turnitin before final submission. Include cover page, Turnitin plagiarism percentage, marking rubric – send in PDF document only.
6. The format of the submitted answer script should be as below:
   Font: Times New Roman
   Font Size: 12
   Spacing: 1.5 – Double
7. Students MUST pass this final assignment in order to pass this subject.
8. Refer to Marking Rubric in page 4.

Short Excerpt

Are New Recruits Looking for Work–Life Balance?

Anyone who has tried to balance his or her time between a busy job and a fulfilling personal life knows how challenging a work–life balance can be. An indisputable fact is that work and personal lives are interconnected. Companies know this. Potential recruits also know this. It’s become more of an issue in recent years due to some important demographic changes that are affecting many workers. For example, companies are experiencing rising demand for the expansion of childcare and elder care programs. This is not surprising given the aging of the U.S. population and that Gen Xers are starting to have families. Thus, many recruits who are members of the “sandwich generation” (i.e., they are sandwiched between elderly parents and young children and therefore have to provide care for both sets of family members) consider as part of their employment decisions the number and type of work–life balance programs that potential employers offer.

Other demographic changes that are contributing to this rise in the demand for work–life balance programs include the increase of single parents entering the workforce and an increase of dual-career couples. In both cases, parents who shoulder caregiving responsibilities often seek flexible work arrangements and more flexible career cycles. Flexible career cycles allow individuals to leave their career tracks temporarily to raise a child, care for a sick parent, and so on. These individuals are welcomed back to work and placed back into career-oriented positions. Work–life balance programs such as job sharing, flextime, and telecommuting are designed for both retaining current employees and attracting potential employees to the firm.

Customizing Bonus Pay Plans

Navigant Consulting Inc., a Chicago-based management consultancy, is the product of more than 25 acquisitions over the last several years. No wonder that, until recently, its short-term incentive pay system was seriously flawed. There was no consistent method of rewarding performance.

“It was difficult to manage so many disparate incentive tools,” says Julie Howard, vice president and human-capital officer. “It was a mess.” Even companies with only one system are struggling to make it more effective. So Navigant redesigned the system. Its short-term cash bonus plan now consists of two basic elements: Incentive pay for Navigant’s 400 senior professionals is based largely on the company’s performance, while its 800 consulting and administrative staff are rewarded primarily according to individual performance. It’s too soon to tell fully what effect the change has had, though already the company is seeing reduced attrition. The hope is that the incentive plan will help the nearly $704 million (in sales) company recover from years of losses.

So far, “people are very excited about it,” says Howard, who has been touring the country to explain the program to employees. “Clarity is a big thing.” Navigant is one of an increasing number of companies that now offer incentive pay to many nonmanagement personnel, linking pay more closely to performance, as it shifts from fixed to more-variable annual compensation.

In a survey of 2,400 companies, consulting firm William M. Mercer found that 56 percent provided incentive pay to employees below the executive level (65 percent when non-profit health care companies were excluded). But companies clearly are struggling to design their incentive programs in an effective way. The soul-searching is aimed at motivating employees up and down the line to help companies meet their overall goals.

Sources:

• Nancy R. Baldiga (2005), “Opportunity and Balance: Is Your Organization Ready to Provide Both?” Journal of Accountancy, Vol. 199, Iss. 5, pp. 39–45.
• Adapted from “Most U.S. Employers Expect to Give Pay Raises in 2011” (August 6, 2010), http://www.shrm.org.

Instructions:

Use the excerpts as guideline and answer the following questions in an essay format.

1. Why is it necessary for businesses to offer work-life balance programmes in order to strategically position themselves? What do you think their reasoning? Explain.
2. Discuss how work-life balance plays an important role on job analysis, job description, and job specification during recruitment.
3. “If compensation packages work well for one business, that same compensation packages system should also work well for other business”. Explain whether this statement is true?
4. “By strategically designing a compensation strategy, organizations can foster employee motivation and drive them towards achieving the company’s objectives. Through aligning compensation with performance that supports the company goals, both new and current employees can incentivize effectively. Ultimately, this approach has the potential to enhance productivity levels and cultivate a positive work atmosphere”.

Explain why you believe it is critical to understand the company’s managerial strategy before creating a compensation or incentive pay plan.

(100 Marks)

Answer

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